A prime-time test for the Patriots

Prime time has arrived for the Patriots. There was a palpable sense of excitement Wednesday as the Pats began serious preparations for Monday night’s visit by Houston.

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PAUL KENYON
Posted Dec. 5, 2012 @ 5:01 pm

FOXBORO — Prime time has arrived for the Patriots.

There was a palpable sense of excitement Wednesday as the Pats began serious preparations for Monday night’s visit by Houston. The players, and even coach Bill Belichick, spoke about how the meeting with the 11-1 Texans is the biggest test yet this season.

“Any time you play the best, you want to see how you match up,” Tom Brady said. “I think that our guys are excited. They’re a big challenge for us. They’re an excellent football team in all three phases. They do a great job. It will be fun.”

“They’ve had a great season,” Belichick said. “I can see why their record is what it is.”

The Texans, who will be completing a three-game road trip, have not lost on the road all season, the only team in the league that can make that claim. The game could be a preview of the AFC Championship. According to the Elias Stats Bureau, the Patriots and Texans are tied for the best combined record of Monday Night Football opponents this late in the season, in the history of MNF.

What makes it even more intriguing is that the opponent is a bit mysterious to New England fans. The Patriots have had a long series of big games against the Colts and Steelers and Broncos and yes, even the Jets.

But they have played Houston only three times in the 11 years since the Texans joined the league. Houston has made only one trip to Foxboro and was crushed in that one, 40-7, in 2006. The only time the teams have played since then was a 34-27 Houston victory in Reliant Stadium in the season finale three years ago, a day Pats fans will remember as the one on which Wes Welker tore both the ACL and MCL in his left knee.

The Texans had never won a division title or made the playoffs until last season, when they went 10-6, took the AFC-South crown and beat Cincinnati in the first round of the playoffs before losing to Baltimore in the divisional round. They had the best record in the AFC in mid-November when quarterback Matt Schaub suffered a foot injury and was lost for the rest of the season.

Houston has several of the game’s biggest stars in running back Arian Foster, wide receiver Andre Johnson and defensive lineman J.J. Watt.

Watching the Patriots play in a big game is familiar for fans at Gillette, but having the Texans as the opponent is very new. Brady and Belichick spent part of Wednesday explaining who these guys are.

“Houston has really been an impressive team to watch on film this week. They really do everything well, which is reflected in their record and the way they play,” Belichick said.

“They certainly get after the football,” said Brady. “They can rush the quarterback. They do a great job stopping the run. I think Coach said [in] pretty much every statistic that you could name, they’re on top of the league. That’s why they’re 11-1; they’re playing great.

“They’re taking the ball away; they get a lot of balls batted down at the line of scrimmage, interceptions, fumbles,” Brady said.

“They’ve won a lot of close games. They’ve won overtime games. They’ve come from behind. They’ve won on the road — they’re 6-0 on the road. I think our guys understand the challenge and we have to play our best game. I think that’s what it means.”

A Houston victory would all but clinch the top seed in the AFC playoffs for the Texans. The Patriots need to win, not only to stay in contention for the top seed, but to maintain position for a first-round bye. Brady is not thinking about such matters.

“We don’t put too much thought into that, certainly not this week,” he said. “Coach always tells us, ‘Don’t even think about the playoffs. They’re so far away.’ And that’s the truth. This game is hugely important to our season. It’s an AFC opponent that’s 11-1. They lost one game to an NFC team in Green Bay who played great that night.

“This team doesn’t give you anything; you have to really go out there and earn it. I think for us as a team, there’s not really much more you could ask for than that: to play Monday Night Football in December against one of the best teams in the NFL and see what we’re capable of.”

The positive news for the Patriots is that they have won six in a row and feel they are playing better overall than at any point in the season. That is not new. Over the last three seasons, the Pats have won 20 straight games in the second half.

“I think it’s just constant improvement. It’s day to day coming to work focused with an intention to do better than you did the previous day, so over the course of three or four months, that really pays off,” Brady said. “The different guys that come in in September, October, November, you’re working to get better. You’re working with your new teammates, and you’re at a different place than you were three months ago. That’s probably the reason.”

Regardless of what happens Monday night, the Pats will go through much the same thing next week. That will be a Sunday night game against another top Super Bowl contender, San Francisco.